Ukraine Intensifies Drone Surveillance In Donbas - Donetsk Commander

The Ukrainian military has increased its use of drones for aerial surveillance in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), deputy commander of the DPR Operational Command Eduard Basurin said Friday

DONETSK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 21st June, 2019) The Ukrainian military has increased its use of drones for aerial surveillance in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), deputy commander of the DPR Operational Command Eduard Basurin said Friday.

"The United Operation command [of the Ukrainian Armed Forces] has intensified aerial reconnaissance and fire aiming by means of their unmanned aerial vehicles, which are regularly shot down by our air force," Basurin said.

The Ukrainian military also uses electronic warfare against drones of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe's (OSCE) Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine, he added.

In April 2014, the Ukrainian government launched an offensive against its eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, known together as Donbas, after they proclaimed independence following what they considered a coup in Kiev two months earlier. According to recent UN estimates, more than 3,300 civilians have died and over 7,000 been injured during the conflict.

On March 21, 2014, the OSCE deployed its Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine in a bid to mediate peace in Donbas through impartial observation and assessment of the situation there.